I couldn't get through this book. The three short stories were not well enough researched for me.
In the first one alone, the stereotypical "runs back into the burning building to save someone/a pet" trope makes me more angry than it excites me. In a real scenario that is just that basics of what will NOT happen. It should be the very least an authors respects when writing about this kind of job.
As much as I look forward to reading stories about fire fighters and cops, this book was a dnf for me.

I enjoyed these three stories, but at the same time I was disappointed because I wanted more. Not my favorite Dutton.

What's not to love. Great story, the main characters are always well developed and the reader is drawn in to enjoy every page of the journey. Can highly recommend.

This is a fun read! Three different stories that intertwine. It's fun to see these three different couples come together and how their stories mix. Read it!

I really enjoyed this one. Every one of the three stories has just enough to leave you wanting more but not enough to bore you. An easy read if you don't want to commit to the same characters for too long.

Good story, couldn't wait to keep reading all what was going to happen. I look forward to reading more by this author.

3.5 stars
This was 3 novellas but it might as well have been part 1, 2 and 3.
An accident takes place and novella 1 (part 1) describes it from a fireman's point of view. Novella 2 (part 2) from a policemen point of view and novella 3 (part 3) from a paramedic.
Each one describing their view of the accident and how they handled it. Also they each meet a lady friend and experience insta love.
It was a clever format but the characters and insta love was a bit of a turn off. But I would definitely encourage the format, but just use "parts" rather than novellas.

Three stories revolving around a tragic event. I loved the different perspectives of the event and the unique stories spawned from tragedy that inspired love, healing, and passion. Very enjoyable.

This is a clever play on the short story, in that it is three separate stories but they all have links to the same characters and incidents. It isn’t just a change in point of view character, it’s a wholesale change in the way the stories are written but you always know where you are.

The women are a variety of first responders - fire fighters, paramedics, police etc and they all work in the same geographical area although they may not all know each other. The relationships - and romance - are teased out and even although the stories are not full length novels, they don't all declare love in the first five pages. In some cases quite the opposite. No spoilers here.

It would be nice to spend a little more time in the company of these heroes but I enjoyed the book and the concept nonetheless. I have read Ms Dutton before and she doesn’t disappoint in this latest outing.

Recommended if you want something with a variety of viewpoints which is a quick read and has some angst but a happy ending.

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley in return for an honest review.

ARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a different take on a book of short stories, in that usually these books feature shorts from multiple authors. Here, Dutton has written three short stories about first responders that tie together. All of the stories are interesting, but none of them overcome the limitation inherent in short stories, there isn’t enough time to really tell the story. At least with them being tied together we see more of the first two couples.

The first story features Britt, a firefighter and Claire, who works at an animal rescue. The two meet when Claire’s apartment building catches fire. To say that they don’t hit it off immediately would be putting it mildly, but I did think the whole disagreement thing went on too long, especially since this was a short story. Neither character came off well at the start, but I‘d warmed to them by the end. The disagreements also made the turn around to dating seem a little abrupt. The romance itself once it got started was nice enough though. 3 stars

The second story was the best of the three in my opinion and features a traumatic incident and involves Nicole, an account manager attending a music festival and Traci ‘Sam‘ a cop (who also features briefly in the first story). The two meet by virtue of the incident and I found that their relationship was believable and sweet and I liked how it unfolded. Both were also nice, interesting characters, which also helped. 4 stars

The third book features Candace and Jenna, who also feature in the incident from story 2 and that storyline carries on here. They are paramedics who have been partnered for 3 years, and the incident proves a catalyst for some ‘feelings’ reveals. Again, they are both likeable characters and this features mutual pining and the friends-lovers trope, but was the story I felt was most affected by the short story format, I think it would have benefitted from more of their background and then more of the relationship unfolding over a longer period. 3.5 stars

All in all though, this is an enjoyable read, and something a bit different for those who like the short story style. It’s probably 3.5-3.75 stars, rounded up.

It was nice that the three stories were all interconnected and followed a linear timeline, with the same characters reappearing. Of all the stories, the second one was my favourite. The incident at the festival had me on the edge of my seat, and both of the main characters were very well developed and the romantic storyline was sweet and well paced. I struggled to like either of the lead characters in the first story and enjoyed that one the least. One of the main characters in the third story was also quite unlikeable and the friendship between the main characters didn't really come across, but the last couple of scenes were very well written and a nice ending to this collection of novellas.

I thought that they were good stories but they were in an anthology so the story and depth of characters could not really get fleshed out. It’s a nice easy read for a lazy day.

This is a special form of three novellas as they all revolve around a group of friends and more or less around one major incident. In every story, the group of friends has an appearance. I've never read a book like this before, and I think it's an interesting and exciting way to do it. As the title already suggests, most MCs are first responders, and women in uniform are always appealing, isn't it?

In "Rescued", the first story, we meet firefighter Britt and Claire who runs an animal shelter. When they meet the first time there are a lot of sparks flying, but not the sexy ones. I liked the idea of how they met and finally got together, but in this story, it was too quickly from "each other can not stand" to "I love you". I know it has to happen faster in a novella than a full-length novel, but still, this was a bit too fast. I really liked Claire and her work at the animal shelter, no wonder as I'm an animal lover myself. Even when she wasn't really friendly to the firefighter who hold her back before running into a burning house and saved her life, she's a good and caring woman. On the other side, it wasn't easy warming up to Britt's character, as judging and stubborn she was. But finally, a dog and his owner melted her. Rating 3 stars

In "Pushed" police officer Traci meets financial planner Nicole in the midst of a tragedy, after a man drove his car into a crowd at a music festival. It just so happens that Nicole and Traci worked together and helped wherever they could. I very much liked both women. I was impressed by how Nicole could react and help despite her fear and anxiety. Also Traci, who of course has seen her share of crime and violence, has never experienced something like this. After sharing this life-changing event, they spend more time together and get to know each other. But how can you be sure, that the growing feelings are real and not kind of a crutch to overcome the events trauma? This was a sweet love story and there was even enough space for a side story of a gay teenage boy, Traci was helping. Rating 4 stars

"Healed", the third story is about Jenna and Candace, two paramedics who work together and also happen to be best friends. Candace has had stronger feelings than friendship for Jenna for quite some time but does not dare to act on them for fear of ruining their friendship. Jenna gets badly injured by the incident at the music festival and has a hard time to get healthy and back to work. Candace is a wonderful and caring friend who wants to be there for her but Jenna is sometimes behaving like a jerk and rejects her, which gave me a hard time to like her. The flows of the story were good and well done, how they struggled to overcome their fears and realize that there is the possibility of much more than friendship for them. I would have liked it when this story would have been longer so we could get to know them and their past better. Rating 3.5 stars

Overall an enjoyable and easy read with women in uniform, animal lover, and a great group of friends. I guess a lot of you will enjoy this small trilogy.

My average rating, 3.5 stars.
Thanks to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for receiving an ARC for an honest review.

I'm a huge fan of Erin Dutton. I'm a native Tennessean and she lives in Tennessee, plus I've met her at Knoxville Pride twice. I never skip the Acknowledgements section in a book, and this one was especially meaningful because she mentioned that she was completing her page proofs in the wake of the tornado that destroyed much of middle Tennessee on Super Tuesday this past March, right at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

Many readers associate Erin Dutton with books revolving around the First Responders universe - police, firefighters, and paramedics (even though I adored For the Love of Cake, which doesn't!), and truly, reading this 3-novella set was much like watching Chicago Fire. She really knows her stuff, and the storylines in this book were incredible realistic.

I read this book without reading the synopsis because Erin has never steered me wrong. So I was expecting three separate novellas, similar to what Bold Strokes Books has done recently combining three authors. But I really thought this was a fascinating concept; it could've been one book with six main characters as all of them appeared in each others' stories. In addition, there's something for everyone with friends-to-lovers and enemies-to-lovers both represented. Lots of action throughout and inspiring stories.

A set of three novellas all about women on the front line....women in uniform...what's not to like! All stories are interlinked with the characters overlapping each of the stories which give the stories a bit of continuity. My favourite novella was Healed, as I felt there was more angst in that story compared to the first two. Overall, the stories were well written with some great characters.

Trilogies are usually full length novels with characters introduced in the first novel becoming the focus of the second and third books. They all share something in common such as where they live, their occupations or a lifetime of friendship. I chose to read Three Alarm Response for the first responder aspects of this novella trilogy. Gotta love a woman in uniform. I was also curious to see how three distinct stories could develop in the confines of one novel.

These were my impressions of the three stories, connected as it turns out, by tragic events, the fragility of life and bowling night.

Rescued
Features a firefighter and animal rescue advocate. I normally like the butch/ femme dynamic but this time I found it irritating. Both characters were as unlikeable as they were inflexible in their attitudes. I was happy when this book ended.

Pushed
Another butch/femme match up, this time featuring a police officer and a financial planner. I really enjoyed this one. I liked both characters. Nicole and Traci’s story was a sweet one of two women taking a chance at love, working through the trauma they both experienced at the concert. I also liked the the side story featuring a gay teenager trying to survive on the streets. My personal favourite of the three.

Healed
Jenna and Candace are paramedics and best friends, the best in their station until Jenna is seriously injured at the music concert. Unlike the first two stories, this one is between friends, one physically and emotionally damaged and the other, fearful to reveal her attraction for fear of ruining their friendship. Jenna is damaged to the point that she is hard to like as a character. Candace wants badly to be there for Jenna but worries she will be rejected. I was warming up to the struggles these two characters faced and the story ended. Of the three novellas, I wanted this one to be longer. I needed both women to face their fears and spend more time with each other before admitting their love.

I had my favourites but a good attempt at connecting these first responders to life changing events and HEA’s.

3.5 stars

ARC received with thanks from publisher via NetGalley for review.

It’s been a while since I last read a book by Ms Dutton and I’m happy to say she still has the gift when it comes to writing romance. As most of you probably know many of her books revolve around first responders and so it continues.
Rescued: Claire Willows loves her dog, Stu and would do anything to keep him safe, even staying in a burning building, refusing to leave until she can find him. But when the first responder wouldn’t let her go back in to find him one thing she knows for sure is the fact that she doesn’t like the FR Britt Everett. All Britt did was keep Claire safe which is her job. When a building is burning the first ones rescued are the people in the building, not go in after their pets. Luckly someone else saved her little dog, Stu. Now all Claire has is the clothes on her back. Her co-worker offers a place for her and her dog but even though Britt couldn’t help her it doesn’t mean she has forgotten her. Luckly Britt feels the same way. Now can they start over again because both Claire and Britt felt a spark and it had nothing to do with Claire’s apartment burning.
Pushed: This novela overlaps where ‘Rescued’ and starts the courtship between police officer Traci Sam and business executive Nicole Klein. When Traci comes into the fair grounds the first person she observes is Nicole, helping an injured music festival attendee. The concert was a first and big step for Nicole because doing anything but work is not how she was raised. But now apart from her family she wants to explore her new surroundings.
This is how they meet and it’s taken a toll on both of them but by sticking together they fall into a relationship neither wanted.
Healed: Now we have Jenna Teele and Candace Cooper’s story. Again it starts at the music festival where EMS’s help the people who attended the festival. Jenna was seriously hurt when a car hit her and spent the next three months recovering enough to go back to work, where she will again be working with Candace. But all the time Jenna was recovering she refused Candace’s help. Candace has been in love for almost the whole three years the two worked together but was scared to let Jenna know because she felt if Jenna didn’t return her feelings they’d probably end their partnership. But that has all changed because Candace had to let Jenna know, She might never get another chance.
Ms Dutton has given us three different stories covering the same characters that could have all been under the same title. Not saying it was a good move or bad. The whole plot revolved around the lives of first responders. Good read. Nicely paced and lots of action.
ARC via NetGalley/Bold Stroke Books

As its title suggests, this book includes three short stories related to first responders. In order, the first is a firefighter, the second a police officer and the third are paramedics.

Without going into too much detail, the first two stories seemed better than the third. Actually, I think the level has been declining, the first being the best, the second is good and the third the least interesting for me.

In common, the three stories have a bit of tense situations related to the profession of their protagonists and a bit of sexual tension between the couple in each story.

Another common thing is that of the six women who make up the three stories, four of them are friends, so all of them appear in the three chapters with more or less prominence.

In summary, with its ups and downs, it has been a fairly enjoyable read.

Normally I don't read novellas but this one caught my attention and I decided to try it out because right now I am struggling to get my reading mojo back. It's so good. The perfect amount of escapism. I needed to read something with a happy ending and this wonderfully written book hit the spot. Pick it up and see for yourself how good it is. Happy reading!

Most of the time I choose to read full length novels. I think it might be because I want to stay with characters and stories I’ve fallen in love with as long as I can. Luckily Three Alarm Response by Erin Dutton gives me the best of both worlds.

This is a collection of three novellas that are interconnected. Each story builds on and continues from the story before using the same main setting and some of the same characters. Each story is also about first responders (firefighters, paramedics, and police officers) and the women they fall in love with. All three novellas are well written. The main characters and the secondary characters in each tale are easy to engage with. The romances are passionate, and each tale is entertaining. The angst that runs through all three novellas just makes the stories that much better.

I really liked reading these three novellas. They are short enough to read in one sitting individually, and together they make a great overall story with not one, but three different romances. If you enjoy a good love story with women in uniform as the main characters, then you are in for a treat with Three Alarm Response.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an honest review.

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